The
Nybelmarian Verain Lizard (which literally
translates as "Egg Thief" in the ancient Lilliveran tongue) is a creature that
inhabits the exotic Rainforests of Shar. It is known for its characteristic
pointed ears and unusual mating call. The creature itself has a very odd nature,
for although it chooses to live alone it will help any other of its kind that
expresses need. The form "Verain" by the way is also used as the plural for this
beast.

Picture description. A Verain lizard sneaking
around a pair of Le'Tan in order to steal the eggs from the
unfortunate couple. Image drawn by Sheil.

Appearance.
The Verain Lizard by its adulthood (which is around three years) is just over
three fores long from the
tip of its nose to the end of its stubby tail. The Verain is also lighter than
you would expect for a creature that has such a muscular build and stature. It
is believed that since the Verain normally starves itself of food for long
periods of time and eats very little, the creature is relatively hollow. The
average lizard weighs only around three and half
hebs (the females of the
species normally exceeding this).

This beast’s skeletal structure is different to what one would regard as normal.
The creature has four legs, which are themselves significantly longer than its
spine, which disables the creature from running (at least at a speed where they
cannot be pursued) without unbalancing themselves and falling over. However the
length of these legs does serve a purpose. With them the Verain can reach
further into a nest, and when used in conjunction with the odd liquid secreted
from each of the creature’s ‘paws’ it can easily steal an egg out of a nest
without too much trouble or making too much noise. Aside from other
abnormalities in the creature’s skeleton, the neck of the lizard is unusually
bulky for the size of the rest of the beast. Though this remained a mystery for
some time, Krean researcher Kitus Ophelli (upon dissecting the creature) found
out that the apparatus to produce the Verain’s famous call. Inside the small
space was a multitude of respiratory appendages that he believed helped the
creature in conjuring the peculiar sound it creates.

The rough scaly skin of the Verain lizard is normally a pale, yellowish brown
hue with slight changes in pigmentation in concentrated areas to produce a form
of mild camouflage in the leaf litter of the jungle floor. The Verain also can
be recognized by its odd shaped ears. These are almost perfectly triangular and
hang like that of some Sarvonian dogs.
These appendages are particularly interesting since they are a mammalian
feature, and this is almost entirely reptilian. As well as this the Verain also
has another very peculiar bodily function that helps it steal eggs. On the
bottom of the creature's paws a black, viscous and very sticky liquid is
seemingly constantly secreting. This liquid is used to help the creature swipe
eggs, but it also exudes a smell very similar to that of
human waste, making the creature an easy
target for predators with a honed sense of smell. These
lizards are also known to have a short stubby tail and almost enchanting
amber eyes.

Special Abilities.
The Verain lizard has many odd skills and possesses many abilities, which aid it
in its survival. Firstly, the Verain’s fluid exuding from its ‘hands’ is a very
useful feature that aids it in its ability to steal eggs from nests. This liquid
coats the creatures 'hands' on the ends of its legs. Once the creature sneaks
close enough the nest, it will quickly swipe the egg, using the adhesive fluid
pick it up, and will flee, placing the egg in its mouth. This ability to steal
flawlessly without even making a sound is very important to the Verain, since
eggs are the entirety of its diet and it needs to steal without being noticed
(as it almost completely lacks any form of defensive mechanism). In addition to
this, the sticky fluid can also be used to help the creature climb trees to
avoid some of its predators.

Verain are able to communicate (although normally only through distress as they
are notoriously antisocial) with their characteristic vocalisation. The exact
sound of this is almost incomparable to any other sound one can hear in the
jungles, though many have attempted to do so. It has been called by some "The
screeches of the earth" or "a weeping
whistle", but most say these are inaccurate, and that the exact sound cannot be
fully explained. However, we do know that Verain seem to have an involuntary
response to this sound, their body seemingly abandoning the matter at hand and
leaving to investigate. Though this can be very useful for the Verain in
trouble, it can be a bit of a nuisance for the others.

Territory.
Verain lizards are only ever found in the Jungles of Shar, a peninsula on the
southwestern section of Nybelmar. Though
there are many hypothesised reasons why these creatures prefer to live in the
jungles (the fact that they are enjoying the climate is a common one), the one
that is most often considered as the most important reason is that the terrain
of the Jungle allows the Verain to put all of its special abilities to good use.
The dense foliage helps them with their sneaking, hiding their appearance and
muffling the sounds of their movement, while their cries (normally of
desperation) echo efficiently off of the trees, spreading the sound further.

Habitat/Behaviour.
Verain are known for their notoriously sneaky manner. They are in fact so
troublesome that the phrase ‘Slippery as a Verain’ was coined to describe
someone who could rarely be trusted and always had an ulterior motive to helping
others. Verain move around in a fashion that attracts a lot of curiosity from
those with sharp enough eyes to spot them moving in the shrubbery and
leaf-litter. Many believe that this nature is assumed by this creature because
of its lack of an ability to defend itself when confronted with a predator. As
such they tend to avoid them at all costs, and so attributes such as cowardice
and dishonesty are associated with them.

Additionally to this, the Verain are also famous for being very solitary
animals. Though it could be argued the purpose of this is purely practical due
to the creature's secretive nature (the less creatures trying to sneak the less
noticeable they are), it is commonly thought that this is because the Verain is
terrified of almost every other living creature. This can be observed very well
in the wild when you see a bird try to defend its nest from the creature. The
much smaller bird will flap its wings, the Verain letting out a spineless squeal
before fleeing. Despite their ‘loner’ nature, the Verain will always respond to
the distress cry of another of its kind. Some scholars have compared this
behavioural contradiction to a thief’s code of honour. While they live in a
status of perpetual exile, all of the kind are connected and also obliged to
help one another should the need arise.

A male Verain lizard can expect to live to around ten years of age, though the
females of the species are much more fortunate, normally living to around
thirteen years, though observations of ages up to fifteen and even sixteen are
not uncommon.

Diet.
It is no surprise what the staple food of the Verain (whose name directly
translates as "Egg Thief" from ancient Lilliveran) is: eggs. In fact almost the
entirety of its (rather small) appetite is filled with the shelled children of
other rainforest dwelling birds or lizards. The Verain
however have problems with eating these unborn beasts. The Verain swallow eggs
whole, using the muscles in their neck to crush it in their throat. However, the
shards of the cracked eggs remain in the neck and are normally very hard to
digest. If a Verain attempts to eat again the shards will pierce the creature’s
flesh from the inside out, so the Verain wait for the shells to be broken down.
This process can take days, which is the common explanation why the Verain eat
surprisingly little for their size.

Most of what else the Verain eats is dead or dying leaves, though this is
thought to be to aid the digestion rather than satiate the creature.

Mating.
Mating is generally as impersonal as most other situations in a Verain’s life.
The fluid, which is produced in the palms of a female ready for mating, has a
subtle change in aroma only detectable by the male Verain. A male will track
down the female, and once that is done the cold and impersonal ritual begins.
The Verain female will stop in her tracks and lie down whilst the male
internally fertilises the eggs. This takes a matter of
blinks. The male then leaves the
mother of his child and resumes his normal business.

While the clutch of eggs remains in the female she will create a small burrow in
the earth. She will lay around five eggs into this hole and cover it up. This is
the most protected a Verain can ever expect to be. The mother will leave her
offspring and, as the father does, will continue with their normal daily
routines. Many eggs are ruined by large animals stomping on the loose ground and
crushing them, or other lizards digging up the eggs and
eating them. However, if the eggs survive six months, they will hatch into small
slimy little creatures no larger than a puppy. It will look almost identical to
a downsized version of a Verain, except its ears will be largely exaggerated
making its face look rather small. At this size it will eat mostly roots or
seeds if the trees are in season. These Verain offspring grow at an alarming
rate, and in nine months they are adult size.
Usages.
The Verain itself has only one conventional direct use. It is hunted by numerous
tribes of Shar (the Viaquis more so than others) and its whole carcass is fed to
much larger captive animals. This however is generally unfavourable due to very
sparse amount of meat on the Verain’s bones.

Despite this, the Verain do have a secondary use. The fluid produced by the
Verain is collected (either from trails the lizards
leave behind or by capturing one and establishing it as a constant source of the
liquid) and is very useful to game hunters. Since many predators in the Jungles
of Shar recognise this scent as an easy meal, false trails are made by game
hunters to lure the animal into traps. It should be noted though that this use
only exists within the Shar peninsula, since the aroma isn’t recognized by
creatures outside of that area.

Myth/Lore.
There are no tales surrounding the Verain lizard (well at least none of them
notable or widespread enough for the
Compendium). However there was
once a minor group of criminals who where known for their petty thefts such as
street robbery or poaching animals. They were known as the ‘Violet Blanket’
until they succeeded in an attempt to kidnap a
Krean governor’s daughter, at which
point they adopted the title ‘The Verain Brothers’ as they had stolen the
offspring of another just like the Egg Thief lizard does itself. Sentries from
the High Temple of Ankriss eventually found the girl, and every last member of
the organization was either executed or exiled from the Shar peninsula
permanently.